Women in Politics (WIP) on Wednesday expressed worry over the low representation of women in the ministerial list released by President Muhammadu Buhari for his second tenure.
Mrs Ebere Ifendu, the President, Women in Politics, while speaking in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja, said that the number “is low and very poor’’.
DAILY POST had reported that Buhari sent a list of 43 nominees to the Senate on Tuesday.
Ifendu said women were not happy with the nominees’ list though the few women listed were women of character and integrity who had done well for the society.
“We are saying we have many more women that should also be part of this list considering the promise the president made to women.
“He said he will work with the Nigerian gender policy which is about affirmative action, so what happened to the promises he made to women?’’
Ifendu said there was the need for the President to fulfil that promise due to the already low number of women in elected offices after the 2019 elections.
She said that 2,970 women contested elections into different positions in the 2019 general elections but only 67 got elected across the country.
Ifendu said a breakdown of the elected members showed that no woman was elected as president, vice president or governor while only seven were elected to the Senate.
She said that 12 were elected to the House of Representatives and 44 to the State Assemblies with about 11 states without a female member.
Ifedu pointed out that the Nigerian women went into the elections with high expectations but the overall level of representation of women in politics remained a cause for concern as their number continued to dwindle.
Meanwhile, the Abundant Nigeria Party, ANRP, had earlier expressed disappointment over the low number of women nominated in the ministerial list sent to the Senate by President Buhari.
